The ageless, bruising Derrick Henry is making running backs matter again

The 30-year-old is dominating offenses at an age when most of his peers have long retired. But he is also a symbol of the resurgence of the ground game

The NFL is a passing league - or so we are told. It's been that way for close to 20 years. Every new rule, contract, coaching hire and draft slot reinforces that the sport is now engineered to attack or defend the air. But Derrick Henry, it seems, did not get the memo.

In a league that chews up running backs with a ruthlessness that borders on disdain, Henry continues to plough ahead. In his ninth season, the 30-year-old future Hall of Famer tops the league in rushing - again. And it's not even particularly close. Six weeks in, Henry leads the rushing race by nearly 100 yards over San Francisco's Jordan Mason, doing so by thumping away between the tackles.